Kings Island Halloween Haunt – Review (Mason, OH)

Overall Score – 2.9/5

(all ratings scored out of 5)

Blackout

Curb Appeal – 3/5
Scare Factor – 3.3/5
Actor Enthusiasm – 3/5
Creativity – 3.7/5

Overall – 3.25/5

Todd – This one could be terrifying if you’re scared of the dark of claustrophobic. It’s pretty much just a maze in the pitch dark. PROS: It’s different than the others. CONS: Rooms and hallways get clogged with people – hope you’re friendly.

Donna (The Frightmaster) – This was not your typical dark haunt.  Blackout was extremely claustrophobic to the point that will make a normal person hyperventilate and a claustrophobic person to have a panic attack.  Think of a dark room with more and more people being crowded into it, all pushing and shoving trying to find a way out.  Did I say it was dark????   You literally cannot see your hand in front of your face.  The haunt winds around and around as you feel your way through different textures of wall, some soft and some electrified!  There weren’t any actors in the haunt as far as I saw (or heard) but it was a scary experience.  One of the better dark haunts I have been to.

Gus – This review is bittersweet. This year, Kings Island replaced one of my favorite of their haunts, Club Blood, with Blackout. At least Kings Island was mindful enough to tip the hat with a tombstone honoring the beloved Club Blood.

The good news is that Blackout is a worthy successor, but for totally different reasons. There are no actors inside Blackout, instead it is filled with darkness. It is pitch black inside. You’ll have to feel along the walls to make your way out. Some of the textures made me pull back in fright. “”What did I just touch that was so furry? I hope that wasn’t another patron!””

I might still be stuck inside if not for the occasional flash of lightning and subtle arrows faintly lighting the way. Give this one a try, it’s really different!

Board To Death

Curb Appeal – 3/5
Scare Factor – 3.3/5
Actor Enthusiasm – 3.3/5
Creativity – 4.3/5

Overall – 3.5/5

Todd – One of the better themed haunts. Most games are easily recognizable. They quickly go from creative to gory. Not too bad.

Donna (The Frightmaster) – This is always a fun haunt because of the creepy twist on well known board games.  It’s more fun than scary, though.  I felt the lighting was not good this year, though, as it was hard to see some of the detail in the decorations and so the scenes lost a bit of their scary effectiveness. The actors also needed to be a little more aggressive and not so quiet and stand-offish.  We were there on the first night they were open so I’m contributing the lack of enthusiasm to opening night jitters.  Even so, this is still a very fun haunt!

Gus – We had a little trouble finding this one from the map. You’ll find Board to Death back by the entrance to Firehawk and Flight of Fear.

Board to Death was a nightmarish trip through all my childhood board games. I saw, Trouble, Battleship, Operation and Monopoly, just to name a few. The tricky part about this one is that while you are taking in the scene of the twisted board game, the actors will sneak up on you and give you a fright!

Carnevil

Curb Appeal – 3/5
Scare Factor – 3/5
Actor Enthusiasm – 3/5
Creativity – 3/5

Overall – 3/5

Todd – Run of the mill clown haunt. Overuse of black lights is evident throughout. Not a lot of content inside, unfortunately. Only worth it if you’re afraid of clowns. If not, skip if the line is long.

Donna (The Frightmaster) – Usually the Carnevil/Killer Clowns haunt is my least favorite among all of the haunt themes but I found that this one was fun and even a bit scary at times.  The actors, especially the ring master who greets you at the front of the line, were much better and more convincing than some of the other haunts at KI this year.  The illusions were very good and creative, especially the “invisible people” stuck to the wall.  There were many drop door and drop window scares and enough killer clowns to keep your feet moving and your heart pumping all the way through.  This was a good one!

Gus – Carnevil is twisted, black light-infused circus. The good news is that the black lights mean that this one is not quite so dark, the bad news is that those with fear of clowns will still find this one terrifying. Things are not always as they seem as walls move and that thing you thought was a statue was an devious clown playing tricks on you.

Cornstalkers

Curb Appeal – 2.5/5
Scare Factor – 1.5/5
Actor Enthusiasm – 2/5
Creativity – 1.5/5

Overall – 1.9/5

Todd – The one thing that cornstalkers lacked was CORN! There was some at the end, but in past years, the pathway was lined with corn throughout. Perhaps there was a crop shortage this year? In its place was burlap sheeting and puffs of fog. The airbrush t-shirt stand was in clear view from inside. Pretty lame, unfortunately. Was better in years past.

Gus – Cornstalkers is right near the Eiffel Tower. When Cornstalkers first started a few years back, it was too open and too sparsely decorated, but it has continually gotten better over the years. I still find myself wishing that it were more enclosed, and more claustrophobic, but it still allows for some pretty good scares of actors hiding amongst the stalks and jumping out at just the right time.

This is a good one to start with as it is near the entrance to the park and the cornstalks do a great job hiding the actors, even when there is still daylight.

Delta Delta Die

Curb Appeal – 2.7/5
Scare Factor – 3.7/5
Actor Enthusiasm – 4.3/5
Creativity – 3.7/5

Overall – 3.6/5

Todd – One of the better themed haunts. Not too scary, but the girls are fun. If you have the special key, you’ll be initiated into the sorority house before you go in. Be prepared to eat or drink some nasty stuff. Being a scream queen doesn’t come without some effort.

Donna (The Frightmaster) – This one was my favorite haunt of the night due to the decorations and the actors.  The scene is a sorority house gone bad complete with blood thirsty pledges, fraternity pranks, horror movies on a big screen, interactive dialogue with the actors, and some other surprises including a large, walk in closet that’s not what it seems.  The actors in this haunt were very convincing and stayed in character even when we interacted with them.  The detailed rooms were meticulously decorated reminding me of a college sorority or fraternity house (think “Animal House”).  This was both creative and convincing and it was truly a treat to go through!!!

Gus – Now that Club Blood is gone, Delta Delta Die is where to go for your PG-13  Kings Island haunt. The girls of Delta Delta Die have some pretty over the top hazing rituals for entrance to their sorority, you’ll be lucky if you survive it! These girls sure know how to party though. Plenty of detailed scenes and interesting jump scares make this a personal favorite.

Killmart

Curb Appeal – 3.7/5
Scare Factor – 3.7/5
Actor Enthusiasm – 3/5
Creativity – 3.7/5

Overall – 3.5/5

Todd – Consistent throughout and it actually does look like a disheveled department store inside. Just the right amount of actors in this one although I dont know what was scarier; the zombies or that it’s not too far off from what real K-Mart stores look like.

If you have the special key, you’ll have to do some gut fetching before you can go in.

Donna (The Frightmaster) – This was a very interesting and fun haunt and one of the newer additions to the Kings Island Haunt offerings.  This was a scary, creepy trip through an abandoned K-mart with creatures lurking around every corner and under every shelf.  The different areas were “themed” according to a regular store including a clothes department, toy department and outdoor department, each with their own personality and weird personnel.  I loved this concept and kept thinking that it would make a great horror movie – being trapped in an old abandoned K-mart with creepy nightmarish creatures stalking you!  This was one of the best haunts at Kings Island this year.

Gus – Killmart looks like a dilapidated chain retail store. There’s a good number of jump scares. My favorite part of this one was the floral shop. If you stop to shop the monsters will get you, so keep moving!

Madame Fatale’s Cavern of Terror

Curb Appeal – 3.5/5
Scare Factor – 3.5/5
Actor Enthusiasm – 3/5
Creativity – 4.5/5

Overall – 3.6/5

Todd – One of the best haunts for props. The wax models and effects are pretty cool which all come together for a decent theme. Unfortunately, this year it felt shorter and scaled back. Less of a good thing is well, not good.

Gus – This is my favorite haunt at Kings Island. The theme to this one is a wax museum. There are plenty of spooky mannequins and you are never sure if something is real or not. My favorite room is the one with all the heads, but don’t dawdle for long, or your head could become part of the collection!

Slaughter House

Curb Appeal – 3/5
Scare Factor – 3.5/5
Actor Enthusiasm – 4/5
Creativity – 3.5/5

Overall – 3.5/5

Todd – This haunt has the best props of them all, hands down. Entrails. Entrails everywhere! The actors were also pretty lively. Lots of blood in this one. Good job. I wish there was more to the outside decor though.

Gus – Chainsaws and meat. So much meat.

Tombstone Terror-tory

Curb Appeal – 1.5/5
Scare Factor – 1.5/5
Actor Enthusiasm – 2/5
Creativity – 1/5

Overall – 1.5/5

Todd – This one was always…not great. This year they’ve removed the train entirely. Before you’d ride the train half way to the water park and then get off and walk this trail back.

Now, you have to walk yourself back to the starting point on a dirt access road. Worse off, you’re walking directly parallel with the haunt side of the trail. The only thing diving you from what you’re about to walk back through is a thin burlap sheet. No surprises on this one.

Even once on the actual haunted trail, the actors were dull, lackluster and props/hiding places were few and far between.

Might be time to take this one around back and put her down.

Gus – The Tombstone Terrortory was a little more interesting in previous years. You’d get on the train and it would “”break down”” somewhere along the lines and you’d have to fumble through the woods to get back to town. This year, you skip the train ride and walk right past 80% of the haunt, just on the other side of a very thin burlap wall. Unfortunately this spoiled a good portion of the haunt for me as I knew what to expect and where.

There are still some pretty good jump scares along the way, and the woods are pretty creepy at night, but overall, I’m disappointed in what could be a great haunt. If you’re pressed for time, you might skip this one.

Urgent Scare

Curb Appeal – 3/5
Scare Factor – 4/5
Actor Enthusiasm – 3.7/5
Creativity – 3.7/5

Overall – 3.6/5

Todd – This one has always been decent. Unfortunately, it fell in-line with this year’s overall “what happened?” feeling. It seemed shorter and felt more like the same thing over and over until the end. Gurney, blood, victim, demented doctor/nurse repeat.

If you have the special key, you’ll learn one of you is infected and must be cremated. There will be a short, cramped ride for whoever that is. Not a bad twist but what happened to the Poo Man from last year? He was fantastic. Bring back the Poo Man!

Donna (The Frightmaster) – Urgent Scare was dark and demented, long and loud and scary and surreal at the same time.  I especially liked the beginning when one person was singled out and placed in a coffin for a ride to hell.  I got to experience this first hand as I was placed in the dark box and felt the jolt of the casket being moved and lowered into the ground.  Then I was allowed to hide behind a curtain and scare my friends as they walked through.  This haunt was darker and bloodier than last year with better actors and more intense scenes.  It could be even better if the actors were a bit more menacing, but overall I got a good scare more than once while walking through.  Nice job with the detailed rooms as well.

Gus – Urgent Scare is located in the back corner of the park near the Vortex and Dinosaur adventure. This is a hospital gone wrong, so very wrong. Bloody Nurses, demented Doctors, and the poor suffering patients await you on your journey through this haunt.

Wolf Pack

Curb Appeal – 2.7/5
Scare Factor – 1.7/5
Actor Enthusiasm – 2/5
Creativity – 2.3/5

Overall – 2.2/5

Todd – Way too many actors in this one. They’ve crammed a lot of foliage and props into an already small area. There would then also be a guy in a wolf mask every 5 feet. Less is more sometimes.

Donna (The Frightmaster) – This was probably my least favorite haunt at Kings Island this year, somewhat due to the fact that it was still light outside when we went through and we could see every character, who were by the way, all wolves except for a couple of bloody Red Ridinghoods.  This haunt was very repetitive all the way through with each room like the last.  The actors were not very intimidating as we walked through, some didn’t even move toward us or say anything.  Again, possibly due to first night jitters, but it hurt the overall experience of the haunt.  It may have been better to go through this one after dark.

Gus – It’s important to note, that while this haunt was under the cover of a roof, it should probably be called an outdoor haunt since it is so open. We made the mistake of visiting Wolf Pack in the early evening while there was was still some daylight out. With all the light coming in, many of the actors were left with no shadows to hide in. I got the sense that this would be much better under the cover of darkness. Even so there was some great scenes and plenty of corners for the wolves to jump out from. Definitely check this one out.